Grey Walls
by Untaken
Summary: As Lief has only recently become king, Jasmine has not had ample time to familiarize herself with the maze that is the Palace. Becoming lost several times over has reminded her why she despises the towering structure. Twoshot.
1. Grey Walls

**Disclaimer:** All recognizable characters are the creative property of Emily Rodda.

As Jasmine wandered through the hallways of the Palace in Del, she could not help but shudder. Seeing as it was past dusk, the halls were relatively void of activity. The dark, grey walls of stone with low-burning torches reminded the girl all too well of the dungeons of the Resistance Stronghold in which she was imprisoned along with Lief and Barda. She could not even begin to imagine why Deltoran custom had the kings and queens of old reside in what was virtually a giant prison. There was absolutely nothing grand or majestic about the so called Palace to her.

Now that she thought about, Jasmine did not understand why _she_ had to live here either; and judging from the squawks and chatter of Kree and Filli, they could not have agreed more. Jasmine was a heroine of Deltora, surely; her name would live on for many generations to come. However, there was no doubt she was not royalty, like Lief was as king, nor did she particularly work in the Palace, like Barda did as Captain of the Palace Guards.

_Fancy title, I suppose_, she thought idly._ I could defeat Barda easily, though I admit I would not have much patience for training any new guards. _She laughed to herself as she thought of the guards, who as their eponymous profession suggested, were sworn to protect Lief with their lives._ He is treated like an expensive porcelain vase now_, she thought with a slight giggle, _fragile yet important._

Thankfully, she would only have to endure all this a little while more; she had promised Lief after he had been revealed as the true heir that she would only stay for a bit longer to help rebuild the kingdom. With any luck, things would recover swiftly and she could be on her way home to the Forests of Silence as soon as possible.

Stopping in front of the next wooden door, Jasmine turned the handle expecting to find her chambers. Instead, the shine of the dozens of steel swords and pikes that greeted her revealed it to be a weapons storage closet. At this, the young girl growled loudly and stamped her foot, throwing her hands up in the air in defeat. Kree cawed in surprise at the sudden, violent convulsion of her slim body and flew a small distance above her while Filli squeaked in fear.

She had been so sure she had taken the correct path! This had not been the first time Jasmine had gotten lost in the enormous stone complex, and it was irritating her increasingly. What benefit could it have possibly given anyone to have made each door's appearance exactly the same? She knew the Ralads, the tribe who had constructed the Palace, had extraordinary masonic abilities and she respected them; yet, at the same moment she found herself muttering a small curse in their name.

Down the hallway, Lief and Barda had just rounded the corner, speaking animatedly to one another, when they heard Jasmine's sharp cry of frustration. Having caught up to her small fuming form, they each placed a hand on one of her shoulders in an attempt to calm her.

"Whatever is the matter, Jasmine?" asked Barda, the big man furrowing his eyebrows in worry.

Jasmine lifted a hand and gestured to the stuffed storage room in front of her, "I was searching for my bedchambers."

Lief peered over her head at the mass of sharpened steel. "But this is not your room, Jasmine," he said pointedly.

Suddenly, she whirled around and seethed menacingly at the young king, her wild black mane whipping around her face and her jade green eyes flaring with fury. "Do you think me a fool, Lief?" she snapped. How dare he! Did he truly believe she did not know that? The boy shrank back in slight fear and did not answer.

Barda let loose a deep laugh at seeing the supposed brave and noble king cower in the face of this wild girl who still had to look up to glare at Lief. "Come, Jasmine," Barda said, "we will escort you to your chambers." Jasmine merely sighed and slumped forward as both Kree and Filli jumped onto Lief's shoulders to escape her wrath.

The raven-haired girl walked in silence as Lief and Barda resumed their conversation from before. Her expression fell as the seemingly endless hall of grey cobble wavered on and she became engrossed in her own thoughts. She had never felt so out of place in her life; everything about the Palace seemed foreign to her, from the exquisite delicacies the cooks painstakingly prepared each day to the sickeningly bright colors in which the people dressed. She had been led to believe gold and silver were human currency, used to exchange for food and weapons, not for attire as it appeared the nobles were fond of.

In the Forests, Jasmine had never really considered herself to be _human_ in a sense, but rather merely another one of Mother Nature's spawn, as free as could be. Her limited interactions with other people had never bothered her before; that is, until she came to Del. Recently, Jasmine had been feeling more self-conscious with each passing stare, though she fought hard not to show it and held her head high. However, she was dumbfounded at exactly how ignorant humans could really be.

Just last week, having accidentally wandered into the Palace Kitchen in search of her elusive bedchambers once again, one of the cooks had screamed rather shrilly and pointed a shaking finger at her. Jasmine had frowned, thinking the man had reacted in seeing her appearance. Upon hearing the word "rat!", she noticed the man had in fact pointed at Filli, who was perched on her shoulder as usual. The girl sighed in exasperation. _Not this again_, she had thought bitterly, remembering the familiar scenario from Noradz, _how many times must I tell these people? Filli is a Siskis!_ Jasmine soon became enraged by his incessant whimpering and began yelling heatedly at the still shaken man, condemning him for his substantial lack of knowledge and womanly scream, much to the amusement of Lief who had rushed in, sword drawn, upon hearing the commotion.

Jasmine wrapped her arms around herself while she followed Lief and Barda, slowly weaving through the various twists and turns they led her through. Seeing she was no longer prone to explosive behavior at the moment, Kree and Filli had returned to her side. They sensed the girl's woe and rubbed their heads against both her cheeks affectionately in reassurance. Jasmine gave them a sad smile. She was well aware that she naturally got along with animals and trees more easily than with people.

Although she desperately tried to ignore it, Jasmine despised when the Palace workers would point and whisper to one another when she passed, especially if they saw her speaking with either Kree or Filli. She knew her patience was wearing thin, and the last thing she wanted was to harm one of the workers, whether accidentally or intentionally.

"Jasmine, are you alright?"

The girl glanced up and saw it was Lief who had spoken. She had been so lost in her own thoughts that she did not notice she had fallen behind him and Barda, who had both stopped and were now staring at her wordlessly. Slowly, Jasmine caught up to them.

"I hate this place," she whispered so quietly that both Lief and Barda had to strain to hear her. The males quickly glanced at one another with concern etched on their faces before returning their attention to the young girl, waiting for her to elaborate. However, Jasmine had no intention of doing so. Seeing they had stopped in front of her chambers, she quietly thanked them and stepped inside, closing the door behind her.

Upon seeing her familiar room, the anger returned. The deep maroon silk curtains and jewel-encrusted mirror reminded the wild girl of everything she was not: class, sophistication, and nobility. The Palace indeed seemed akin to a prison, but not because it suffocated her. No, Jasmine had plenty of the fresh air she craved whenever she visited the Gardens. In truth, she detested the place because she felt it endlessly _tortured_ her like a prison, mocking her with its strange customs and judgmental inhabitants.

Picking up her dagger, Jasmine strode over to the beautiful silk curtains and cried out in abhorrence as she shoved the short length of steel into the fabric and embedded the weapon in the creases of the cold stone wall behind it. Kree and Filli both jumped in surprise and quickly scurried away to the nest they shared to once more wait for Jasmine's sudden tirade to end. Seconds later, she absently noted a frantic knocking on her door.

"Jasmine! What happened? Are you alright?"

The girl's irritability increased tenfold at hearing Lief's concerned voice on the other side. She supposed it was because the boy infuriated her to no end. Jasmine had noticed recently that he always seemed to be _laughing_ at her, or at the very least smiling at her as if she had just done something immensely amusing. Were he and Barda also mocking her like the rest of this forsaken Palace?

_No_, she thought resolutely, _Lief and Barda would not intentionally hurt me._ The girl had always been wary of confiding in anyone, though now she would entrust her life with either of them.

Jasmine frowned as she glanced at Kree and Filli huddled in their nest, watching her with cautious, yet worried eyes. Sighing with disgust at her outburst, she walked over and picked them up, hugging them to her chest and drawing comfort from their warmth. Murmuring small apologies to her treasured companions, Jasmine rolled her green eyes as another, stronger knocking sounded on her door.

"Jasmine!? Are you harmed? Answer us!" this time it was Barda who had spoken.

"I am fine, Barda," she replied curtly, tossing her head, "merely frustrated from before. Now, I am tired and wish to sleep in peace. Good night, you two."

Her acute sense of hearing picked up on the heavy foot patterns of the big man walking hesitantly away on the other side of the door. However, she froze when she failed to hear the second set of feet leave. Jasmine soon realized Lief still stood outside in front of her door, unmoving. Thinking he still wanted to open the door so he could make sure she was truly unharmed like she said, Jasmine could not help but feel a small twinge of disappointment when, after several minutes, she heard his familiar movement pattern as he too left her alone.

Jasmine quickly shook her head clear of any unwelcome thoughts she was sure would come, and gently placed Kree and Filli back in their nest. She was well aware of her developing feelings for the young king, though she had to admit he was still aggravating at the best of times. The girl also knew, however, that these wanton feelings treaded dangerous water. Jasmine was anything but dense, and it did not escape her notice that Lief tended to pay an unnatural amount of attention to her even when their relationship was expected to remain platonic. She dreaded to think how the kingdom would react if their interest in one another was somehow known.

_It does not matter_, the girl rationalized. _Whatever my feelings are for Lief, it is doubtlessly not enough to keep me here in this depressing Palace._ Deep down, Jasmine knew she also had to steel herself against the inevitable heartache she was confident the young king would unknowingly inflict on her sooner or later; the sight of a few more noble ladies would make sure of that. Hopefully though, by then she would be long gone.

With a determined expression, Jasmine resolved to herself that she would reject any advances Lief might make in the future, albeit gently. It was, she decided, for the best, but she had no wish of losing Lief's companionship in the process. _More than likely, he is only interested in me now because he is used to seeing me_, she thought. _I am only grateful I do not have to stay here much longer; my leaving will surely solve that issue._

Sighing heavily, the wild girl laid down in her bed, content with her decision. _However_, she mused, _if I become lost in here once more, I may just have to return to the Forests sooner than expected._


	2. No Rush

**Disclaimer:** All recognizable characters are the creative property of Emily Rodda. Note that this chapter includes slight spoilers to the plot of _Deltora Shadowlands_, the second series trilogy of _Deltora Quest_.

"Surely I do not require _that_ much protection, Barda," Lief exclaimed, referring to the wave of new Palace Guard recruits he and the big man had just finished inspecting as they strolled through the empty halls to their respective bedchambers.

The Captain of the Palace Guards raised an eyebrow. "Have you forgotten the line of succession to the Belt of Deltora is not yet secure, Lief?" he asked. "Until you produce an heir of your own, your life is in great danger, as is the safety of the kingdom."

Lief felt his cheeks heat up. "I see no rush," the boy reasoned sheepishly, "there will be plenty of time for such things after the prisoners are freed from the Shadowlands." Indeed, he had not yet become king for two weeks before the call came to save the prisoners. Lief had been quite anxious to answer the increasing demands to rescue loved ones from their enslavement north of the borders; however, the problem concerning the line of succession to Deltora's throne had still not yet been solved, even with he and Doom already hard at work on the issue. Lief found it somewhat strange he needed to secure Deltora's future before dealing with the immediate present, but pressed on nonetheless.

However, Lief did not miss what Barda had implied. He _had_ indeed already been thinking long and hard about it; the boy had no doubt he knew who he wanted to become his queen and bear his children. But this wild girl of his dreams had always been a mysterious fascination to Lief, and _her_ feelings about _him_ remained an enigma to the young king as well. In any case, he knew if she did return his feelings, the girl would certainly not appreciate being impregnated solely so that he could leave her behind and journey to the ever-dangerous Shadowlands and free his people. As a result, Lief was conscious of the fact that his secretive plans with Doom were, thus far, the only viable solution.

"She will not stay here forever, you know," Barda stated softly, continuing to stare ahead as they walked.

Lief was taken aback for a moment. Barda knew? Overcoming his initial shock, Lief had to admit he was not as surprised as he had originally thought; after all, the big man had accompanied him and Jasmine throughout their journey to recover the seven Gems. "What do you mean, Barda?"

"She is not comfortable living in the Palace," the man answered simply. Lief knew Barda was right, the dark-haired boy had several times caught Jasmine forlornly staring out a window with Kree and Filli. He recalled that each time, she had been glancing at the many grand trees that surrounded the Palace, her normally mesmerizing, tangled mass of long black hair falling lifelessly on her backside, as if reflecting her mood. He was well aware that Jasmine missed her home in the Forests of Silence, and he empathized with her: he too missed the comfortable warmth of the old Forge in which he was raised.

However, Lief also knew that Jasmine was not used to living with other people, particularly the admittedly snobby Palace dwellers. He remembered with slight mirth at how she was often at odds with the various inhabitants of the grand building, and appreciated the refreshing liveliness and vibrancy she brought to what would otherwise be a dull, stressful occupation. He dearly wished Jasmine _would_ stay forever, contrary to what Barda had said.

As they turned at the next corner, Lief and Barda heard a familiar voice belonging to the girl in question cry out in vexation. From a distance, Lief could see she was clearly upset, glaring into a room down the hallway. Walking quickly to catch up to her, he laid a gentle hand on one of her shoulders while Barda did the same for the other. Both were sure if she became any angrier, steam would begin pouring from her ears.

"Whatever is the matter, Jasmine?" Barda questioned in concern.

"I was searching for my bedchambers," Jasmine said dropping her head in resignation and pointing at the open door in front of her.

Lief raised his eyes over her head, grateful that the girl was not taller than he was, and looked into the room she had pointed at, wondering what about her chambers could have elicited such a frustrated reaction from her. He was surprised to see instead a closet full of pikes and swords of various lengths. Jasmine had gotten lost again? This was very unbecoming of her, and he did not know why it had been occurring lately because the girl's tracking abilities were second-to-none.

"But this is not your room, Jasmine," Lief observed before immediately regretting his words.

In a flash, the small girl in front of him instantly turned and glowered at him. "Do you think me a fool, Lief?" she scowled furiously. The boy hesitated and backed away a short distance from her, absently noting how the fearful expressions of Kree and Filli contrasted her enraged one. Although Lief found Jasmine to be quite attractive when angry, he never fully got to appreciate this fact when on the receiving end of her temper, which he was often on.

With a deep chuckle, Barda stepped in to save the young king from an untimely death, "Come, Jasmine, we will escort you to your chambers." Lief saw the girl sigh in exasperation and he silently thanked the big man for mediating her anger. The boy allowed Kree and Filli, who had both been growing quite fond of him as of late, to flee momentarily to the safety of his shoulders. Wordlessly, Jasmine began to follow behind them as they navigated through the complex maze that was the Palace of Del.

"In any case, Barda," Lief said sometime later, continuing their conversation from where they had left off, "I see no reason your guards should have to follow me day and night. The lack of privacy would be enough to drive me mad as it is!"

The large, bearded man made a small grunt as he considered this. "I suppose you are correct," he mused. "It would be rather foolish to have them trail after you like some lost pup wherever you went."

Lief rolled his eyes at this. "You know I am quite capable of defending myself," he said puffing his chest out slightly.

The big man merely smirked, "You are still only a child, Lief."

The king was indignant. "But Jasmine is even younger than I am!" he protested.

"I did not say she was not still a child as well. Besides, there is not even a half-year difference between you two!"

"I do not see any Palace Guards following _her_ around," Lief grumbled to himself.

At last, they arrived at Jasmine's bedchambers. He and Barda stopped, opening the door for her with the intent to bid her good night before returning to their own quarters. Glancing back, Lief was surprised to see Jasmine had fallen behind and was still slowly catching up to them. She appeared deep in thought, her elfin face marred with a slight frown, and did not seem to notice Lief and Barda had stopped some distance ahead of her. Indeed, the young girl had not uttered a word since they had begun walking, not even to her ever faithful companions, who had returned to her shoulder some time back.

"Jasmine," called Lief as she neared, "are you alright?" She looked up at the sound of his voice. Lief felt a small pang in his heart at seeing the sadness that filled her once-bright green eyes. She made her way over to them slowly.

"I hate this place." She had spoken so softly and so suddenly that Lief was not sure he had heard correctly at first.

The young king glanced in concern at Barda, who met his gaze with equal worry. What did she mean she hated this place? They all knew about Jasmine's loathing of the Palace since the day they had begun living in it. Had she meant something else entirely? Lief glanced back at the girl's crestfallen face, waiting for her to continue.

Instead, she took a glimpse at the room they had stopped in front of. "Thank you for guiding me here," she said quietly, and stepped inside. Lief felt slightly hurt she did not even bid them good night before closing the door on them, and frowned.

At once, an impending realization hit the worried boy. Was Jasmine leaving like Barda had foretold? Is that why she had expressed her hatred moments before? But she cannot! She had promised him she would stay... if only for a little while. Lief felt the hurt in his chest increase tenfold as the thought settled on his mind. After all the time they had spent together, side by side, she was going to leave just like that? He could not even begin to imagine how life would be like without his closest friend who made being the king seem like a slightly less foreboding feat.

Suddenly, a shout sounded from behind the wooden door, followed by what seemed akin to the clang of metal and the familiar squawking of Kree. Lief's eyes widened slightly, and he started to bang his fist on the door. "Jasmine!" he cried. "What happened? Are you alright?" Several moments passed without an answer from the girl, and Lief got ready to burst in and save her from whatever peril she might be in.

"Jasmine!?" boomed Barda's deep voice. "Are you harmed? Answer us!"

Finally, she met his demand: "I am fine, Barda, merely frustrated from before. Now, I am tired and wish to sleep in peace. Good night, you two." Both Lief and Barda hesitated, contemplating whether they should check, despite her wishes, to make sure. After a minute, hearing no more commotion coming from her room, Barda turned and began walking away, but Lief stayed where he was, still staring at her door.

Seeing this, Barda paused and called to him, "Come, Lief, she has probably had a long day as well. We should all get some rest."

"But Barda," Lief insisted, "I really believe there is something bothering her." His thoughts strayed towards the sorrow he had seen on Jasmine's face. Lief had to admit, he did not like seeing her upset and the downtrodden mood she exhibited could very easily affect his own disposition.

However, Lief soon found himself thinking about how he would deal with Jasmine potentially leaving, or more specifically, how he would prevent her from doing so. He knew it was selfish to ponder such things, but he could not help himself! He did not want to lose his closest companion.

"Be that as it may, Jasmine is clearly not going to be in any mood to discuss it with you," Barda reasoned, cutting into Lief's thoughts. "Speak to her about it in the morning, when she is not so emotional."

At this, the young king slowly nodded and turned to join the big man who had already begun walking away again. Lief knew Barda was right; it would do no good to upset Jasmine any more than she felt at the moment, and tomorrow morning would indeed be an ideal time to approach her, assuming she had calmed before then. Lief only hoped she would still be there tomorrow to speak to.


End file.
